Just A Dream
by BlackDawnRose
Summary: Tom was never evil, the ministry was. The Muggles weren't the victims but the attackers. Lilly Evans never loved James Potter but was cursed with a compulsion spell to make her marry him. The magical world is ruled by an emperor. The muggles were defeated, but sit in waiting for their next chance to strike. And Harry and the other children are on their way to Hogwarts.


Hello everyone. This is another story I wanted to post up the start of to see if anyone was interested in it. The Story is an AU and centres around Harry and Draco, some OC's, Lilly, Severus, Lucius and Narcissa and Tom. The back story will be explained more as the story progresses but the general idea is that Tom never became Voldamort. He was never evil and only wanted what was best for his world. In this story he's the emperor of the wizarding world, having overthrown the ministry that were evil and corrupt, and many of his allies, like the Malfoys and Severus are his Generals etc helping him rule. The women of the relationships will also play a more involved role in this story than they do in the books. Tom is married with some children, he has a different last name which will be explained as the story goes along. There will also be other character differences which you'll encounter as the story goes. If something is confusing please write and let me know, I'll explain it. Harry and the other children will be a major part of the story line as well as the adults which you'll see as you read. I won't say any more, I'll let you read and tell me what you think.

Please review, if there's not much interest in this story I won't bother posting the rest.

Thanks

Rosalie

**Just a dream**

Chapter One

It was a chilly, overcast day, a perfect day for a funeral. Severus Prince walked along behind the casket, his new born son held tightly in his arms. They'd all known this was coming; Sarene Prince had never been a particularly strong woman, always quite weak and sickly. The medi wizards had told her she didn't have the strength to carry a child, that it would most likely cause her death; but of course she'd ignored them as she was want to do.

Severus knew she'd always wanted a baby just like he himself had wanted one; but he knew her body couldn't handle it and he wouldn't risk his wife's life to satisfy his own wants. She on the other hand had no problem with it. He'd always made sure she had contraceptive potions to take and she'd always sworn to him she was taking them...of course he and her family soon found out she was lying.

She kept her pregnancy secret from all of them until she was past 20 weeks, not a difficult feat as she had always been good at creating illusions and Severus had been so busy helping to rebuild their world after the war with the ministry. When she'd finally told them it was past the point where abortion was allowed and so there was nothing any of them could do except wait for the outcome and watch her waste away more and more with each month that passed. Severus made her potion after potion, desperately trying to keep her with them, but of course it was all to no avail.

To this day Severus blamed himself for not noticing sooner and he was pretty sure he always would. His work was important, he and Sarene both knew that, but it shouldn't have kept him from noticing what was going on. He wasn't the only one who blamed him either which only made things more difficult. Several of Sarene's family members had refused to speak to him since they'd found out. He should have cared, but he didn't, all he cared about was his wife.

Sarene fought to her last breath for her child. She managed to carry him to full term even though she was barely more than skin and bones by that point. Whenever someone would tell her she was being reckless or stupid or irresponsible, she would simply smile at them and tell them it would all be okay. The medi-wizards and witches told her she would not survive over and over, but she ignored them too, always holding to the belief that everything would be all right. Severus knew it wouldn't and he tried so hard to make her see it too, but she refused, and while she continued to waste away he'd somehow held hope in the back of his mind that maybe she was right and things would be okay. Divination had been another gift of hers after all; perhaps she really did know things would be okay.

Of course, they weren't.

As soon as Azriel was born she held him in her arms, tears streaming from her eyes and a happy smile on her face. She began to weaken almost immediately and knowing the end was close she handed their son to Severus and whispered, "Azriel Severus Prince...love him...keep him safe always...and tell him he was worth everything. I'm sorry, Severus, but this was the way it had to be...I was never meant to last long...but I wanted to give you something before I left this world and you forever..."

That was the moment Severus truly understood what Sarene had done. She knew her end was coming, she knew she would die soon, this was her parting gift to the man she loved. He held his son close and leant forward to kiss his dying wife one last time. He didn't want her to go, he didn't want Azriel to grow up without a mother, but there was nothing he could do.

"You won't be alone...not forever," Sarene whispered as they parted. "One day you will find something you lost...not through searching or wandering...but through our son...he will lead you to happiness, Severus...in more ways than you can imagine...treasure him...love him...he will be all you need until the day comes that you are ready to let others in once more...Don't fear that day when it arrives...embrace it...for me."

He didn't understand what she was saying, he was too distraught and the visions she often had about the future were never easy for him to follow. He remembered her words however and promised to do as she asked.

She smiled at him and leant up to kiss him once more. "I love you, Severus...thank you for the happiness you've brought to my life..."

Then she was gone.

Severus had walked out of the delivery room with his son in his arms and just sat out in the corridor staring at nothing. For a while he couldn't think of anything except the loss he was feeling, and when his sister had come out to take Azriel from him he'd given the boy over without a word. A whole day went by without a single logical thought passing through his mind, but when the sun rose the following morning the sound of Azriel crying broke him from his internal reverie and brought him back to reality. He wasn't one to wallow or feel sorry for himself; he was all that Azriel had now and he wouldn't let the boy down.

So he left the darkness of his room and moved next-door to Azriel's. He picked the boy up from the bassinet and held him close. Azriel snuggled into Severus' chest and fell almost immediately back to sleep. He'd barely left Severus' arms since; Severus just couldn't bear to put him down if he didn't have to. Without his wife Azriel was all he had to hold on to and he wasn't letting go, not for anything.

The funeral procession reached the burial site and Sarene's casket was lowered into the ground. As the people around him were saying their goodbyes, Severus reaffirmed his promise to the woman who had changed his life so much in such a short time. He would love his son and care for him as well as he could for as long as he lived. He would tell Azriel that his mother loved him and had given her life for him without hesitation.

XX

Meanwhile, in a hospital on the other side of the world, Lilly Potter, who was soon to be Lilly Evans once more, was in the middle of giving birth to her first born child; a son to be named Harry. She put everything she had into one last big push and the midwife brought her now screaming son up on to her chest. Lilly cried as the midwives congratulated her and told her how beautiful he was, wrapping her arms around him as warm towels were rubbed over him to dry him and keep him from getting cold.

As the midwife clamped the cord she turned to Lilly and asked if the father of the baby would be cutting it. James was out in the corridor waiting as she had ordered, and they could easily go and get him, but Lilly shook her head. He would have no part in this. The midwife cut the cord and delivered the placenta before covering Lilly and Harry over and giving them a moment alone.

Lilly smiled down at her son gently stroking his hair and holding him to her.

"Happy birthday, Harry," she whispered as tears once more slipped from her eyes. "I wish I was bringing you into a nicer world, but everything's going to be okay. Life might not be easy for us, but I love you, Harry and I'll do whatever I have to to make sure you always have what you need."

"Miss, there are some people here to see you, they're from the Department of law," the midwife told her from the door.

"Send them in," she instructed and Remus Lupin entered with Nymphadora Tonks. The look on their faces was grave and Lilly already knew what they were going to say.

"No luck I'm guessing?" she asked sadly.

Nymphadora shook her head. "No, I'm sorry, Lilly, we couldn't find any proof that James caste that compulsion spell on you. We looked everywhere, investigated every lead we had, but there was nothing. From all reports it looks as if the other party was acting alone."

"But why would he do that?" Lilly demanded. "Make me turn away from my family, make me marry Potter. You know James was behind this. Even if he wasn't the one to caste the actual spell he was the only one to profit from it, how is that not proof enough?" she asked.

"I know you're upset, Lilly," Remus said coming over to stand beside her. "I wish there was something else we could do but we've explored every avenue we have, there's just simply no hard proof that he did it and you know as well as I do that the department of law won't accept anything else."

This was the only problem with the ministry being overthrown and the new government being formed around the Emperor. The world was going to be a better place, but until everything was sorted, which would no doubt take time, the departments set up to deal with things such as keeping the peace weren't interested in dealing with anything that wasn't life threatening, dangerous to the population or any case where there wasn't solid evidence, they just didn't have the time right now. Lilly understood, she truly did, it didn't make her plight any less difficult.

Lilly looked down, tears once more slipping from her eyes. "I lost everything, Remus," she all but sobbed. "My family, my friends...Severus. I can never take back what happened, I can never get those relationships back, none of them will ever forgive me."

"You haven't lost everyone," Remus soothed quietly. "You still have us, we'll never leave you," the lycanthrope promised.

"Don't make promises you can't keep, Remus." Lilly replied. "I know Sirius will side with James and so do you."

"He might, it doesn't mean I will," Remus replied.

"He's your husband, Remus," Lilly argued. "I know what will happen if you fight over me, it's not worth it."

"Yes you are," Remus argued. "You're my best friend, Lilly; I'm not going to abandon you."

"You can't break up your marriage over this," Lilly disagreed. "I'm telling you now, don't do it, I don't want you to. Go back to London and live out a happy life with Sirius, do it for me. I want to know at least one of us is happy."

"She's right, Remus," Nymphadora interjected coming to stand beside the pair. "You and Sirius are going to have a baby of your own soon, you can't leave them. I'll stay with Lilly, I'll take care of her, she won't be alone I promise."

"Go home, Remus, thank you for helping me, but it's time for you to go. I'll keep in touch all right," Lilly promised.

"Lilly-" Remus tried but Lilly cut him off.

"Goodbye, Remus, have a good life."

He opened his mouth to speak once more but the midwife re-entered the room and asked everyone to leave while she checked Lilly over. Remus didn't look at all pleased but he did as he was asked.

"Thank you," Lilly said to Nymphadora before she left. The woman leant forward and kissed Lilly on the cheek slipping something into her hand as she did so. "Love you, Lills," she whispered before leaving the room.

As the midwife was checking Lilly's blood pressure she looked down to find a shrunken parchment in her hand. Restoring it to real size she looked at the information it contained and for the first time in a month she felt herself smile. She'd really have to do something nice for Nymphadora as a thank you for this.

When James slunk into the room a few minutes later, the grin on his face telling her he'd obviously heard the news that the spell couldn't be traced to him, it was to find Lilly smiling at him smugly.

"You look pleased," he noted moving over to the bedside. "Now that you know the truth do you feel better? Are you finally ready to admit you were wrong and come home?" he asked.

Lilly's smile grew wider. "Just how long have you had a mistress, James?" she asked turning the parchment for him to see. The former Gryffindor paled significantly and Lilly nearly laughed. The wizarding world didn't look kindly on cheating, James would be paying Lilly a significant amount of money when they divorced and there was no way he'd ever get custody of Harry.

The court case was short and swift. They couldn't charge James with casting the compulsion spell that caused Lilly to shun her family and friends and marry him as there was no proof of his involvement. They did however award her full custody of Harry and half of James' assets. It didn't give Lilly her family and friends back but it did give her the means to care for Harry without having to struggle for money and that was something at least.

She and Harry retained the Potter Manor in Australia and Lilly decided to remain there near Nymphadora and her family. She knew one day she'd have to return to England, she wanted Harry to go to school at Hogwarts as she had, but for now she was more than content to remain in the Southern Hemisphere with her son and the woman she owed her sanity to.

XX

11 years later.

Severus walked into his son's work room to find Azriel perched in front of a bubbling potion, his long, black hair tied up to keep it out of his way as he added what looked like vanilla essence to the mixture.

"What are you making, sweetheart?" Severus asked moving to stand beside his son and studying the bubbling liquid.

"A headache potion that will hopefully taste better than the usual mixture, I've already completed a soothing tonic with the same properties," Azriel replied motioning to a bottled mixture off to the side of the bench before adding what looked like caramel syrup to the mixture in front of him.

"A headache potion and a soothing tonic?" Severus asked slightly surprised. "Whatever for? I've hardly seen you get a headache in your life and you're one of the calmest people I've ever come across."

"I don't get headaches, you do though," Azriel replied pulling back from the mixture slightly to study his father, a look of concern on his face. "I'm not making either of these potions for me, father, they're both for you. I'm going to be away for a while, longer than I've ever been away before and I want to make sure you're all right while I'm gone," the boy explained.

Severus shook his head and slipped an arm around the boy pulling him close. He understood why Azriel was worried about him. Being the head potions master of the Imperium not to mention one of the Emperor's most trusted Generals was a lot of work and very stressful. Severus was in charge, not just of making the emperor's personal potions, but all of those for his army as well as working with Lucius to keep the peace, command the Emperor's troops and palace guards and liaise with the governments from the other magical communities throughout the world.

It was a busy, stressful job, but he loved it and wouldn't trade it for anything. Tom had done amazing things for their world as emperor and it was an honour to help anyway Severus could. It was just a very taxing job that often left him drained and tense and more than often than not, it was Azriel's presence that soothed Severus at the end of a hectic day.

The child was like a soothing balm to the soul. No matter how old he'd gotten they'd always stuck to the same evening routine, something, Severus had to admit, he was quite pleased about. Azriel always greeted Severus with a hug the moment he walked through the door after which the pair would move to the family room or the dining room, depending on their mood, and eat dinner together in silence, something the pair shared an affinity for, while Severus let some of the stress from his day melt away.

Dessert and coffee was always taken in the family room where the pair would discuss their days, often with Azriel asking questions about a lesson he'd had or something Severus had mentioned, after which the pair would both pull out a book and read for a while with Azriel cuddled up to his father's side until he was too tired and they headed upstairs to bed.

Some people would find their routine strange or impersonal, but it wasn't like that at all. Severus loved Azriel more than anything and Ariel loved him too. They might not spend a lot of time running around and playing games, but Azriel had never been that kind of child, not to mention that while he wasn't as weak as his mother had been, he'd never possessed the boundless energy other children seemed to emit from every pore of their body.

Severus knew that Azriel found more joy reading with his father, talking with him and creating potions with him than he found in any other activity he'd ever engaged in. On weekends, when they weren't visiting with their friends, something they did a lot of since they all lived in different wings of the imperial palace, they'd spend time in the garden, exploring forests and mountains for potions ingredients, or out at the markets together. And while they weren't rowdy or giggly together they both enjoyed that time thoroughly.

Those moments with Azriel were the best of Severus' life and he spent every spare second he had with his child. Their nightly routine helped Severus relax and eased the tension he felt after a hard day at work better than anything else could. It was going to be hard for him when he had to send his beloved child off to school, but they both knew it had to happen. And while Severus was worried about Azriel and how he'd go on his own, he knew his child was equally worried about him, and had been since the Hogwarts letter arrived.

Severus hadn't expected the boy to go to these lengths to look after him, but he knew he should have. Azriel was nothing if not resourceful. Of course he also knew Azriel's attempt to make him a nicer potion were as much a form of avoidance as they were an attempt to care for Severus. The child was afraid of being without Severus; he just didn't want to worry his father by letting him know the truth.

"I'll be fine, sweetheart," he said softly, kissing his son's ebony hair and rubbing his back soothingly when he felt the child's small body tense up, a sign that he was trying not to cry. "It'll only be a few months and you'll see me again. The time will fly, you'll see."

"Can't I go next year?" Azriel asked in a small voice.

"Now, now, you don't want to be a year behind your class mates do you?" Severus asked gently. "You'll have fun at school and you'll learn so much. You're going to love it there, Azriel," Severus promised quietly.

"But you won't be there," Azriel argued back quietly. "We won't get to see each other every day like we do now."

"Well, it's funny you should mention that, because that's actually why I came in to see you," Severus said.

Azriel looked up at his father and blinked his tears away. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Severus reached into his robe and pulled out a small wrapped parcel. He un-shrunk it back to its original size, which wasn't much bigger, and handed it to Azriel. The boy took it from him and carefully opened the paper to reveal an ornately carved pocket watch. It was silver with a large black stone in the middle of the cover and a snake carved from emerald with a ruby eye wrapped around the outside. When Azriel opened it he found one side had a fully functional watch while the other appeared to be a mirror.

As his son was studying the watch Severus pulled a matching one from his robe and opened the cover. He swiped his finger across the glass and suddenly he could see Azriel looking at him through the surface. He heard Azriel gasp and the child looked up at him in awe.

"Is that-?"

"A two way mirror," Severus replied before Azriel had finished the sentence. "Tom had all of these made as a gift for the parents and children in his inner circle who had to be parted for schooling this year. They're all connected so you can talk not only to me but to the other children in the circle whenever you like and, in emergencies, you can contact the other parents.

"How does it work?" Azriel asked and Severus was happy to see his son enjoying learning about something new rather than being upset as he had been previously.

"If you want to talk to me you simply swipe your finger across the glass. If you want to talk to someone else you hold your finger on the glass and say their name," Severus explained.

"So I can talk to you at night if I want to?" Azriel asked hopefully.

"You can talk to me whenever you want to," Severus replied with a soft smile for his son. "Call me anytime, day or night, I'll always be here."

Azriel smiled up at his father and Severus saw the hint of more tears in the child's eyes before he turned in his seat and flung himself into Severus' arms cuddling into his chest tightly.

"I love you, Father," Azriel said quietly.

"I love you too, Azriel," Severus replied kissing the boy's head gently.

Xx

Harry and Lilly Evans stared at their dining room table blankly, heads tilted to the side like confused puppies. The house elves had made dinner, or, if you were in Harry's brain right now, they'd catered for a 250 guest wedding complete with multiple courses and cake and laid it all out on the Evans' dining table that had been magically resized to accommodate the sheer volume of it.

"Think they're going to miss you?" Lilly asked.

"Maybe just a little," Harry replied with a vacant nod.

"How are we going to eat all of this?" Lilly asked.

"I have no idea," Harry replied.

"Perhaps we should have a party," Lilly suggested. The pair glanced at each other, the thought ticking over in their minds for a moment before they both started to grin.

Less than 20 minutes later the dining table was filled with the two Evans, the Diamontinas, a local family consisting of a single mother named Cassidy, and a daughter Harry's age named Jade who would be heading to Hogwarts with Harry that year. Both the Ravenwood families were there including Nymphadora, her husband Jerrod and their daughter Gretel who was a few years younger than Harry. Jerrod's brother Armond, his wife Molly, their twins who were Harry's age and would be heading to Hogwarts with him Fred and George and their daughter who was a year younger named Ginny. They had been Lilly's support network after her divorce, both Ravenwood families having moved to Australia shortly after the war had ended.

Armond, Nymphadora and Jerrod had once been three of Tom's most trusted soldiers, and Molly had been a healer for the army as well as the personal healer for him and his wife. When the war had ended they'd left the country, hoping to escape the constant reminders of the violence and bloodshed they'd witnessed. Tom had been sad to see them go, but had given his blessing for their departure, wanting nothing more than to see his closest and most adored friends happy.

They'd become an extended family over the last few years, spending about as much time together as they did separately. They all lived in the same neighbourhood and their children had grown up together, something Lilly was thankful for as it gave Harry magical friends to grow up with and learn from. The Ravenwood twins were jokers but they were loyal and kind hearted and stronger than most people realized. The Diamontina girl was a little more serious, but enjoyed having a good laugh with the twins and Harry. She was exceptionally strong, something that sometimes worried her mother a little; but she had no desire to hurt anyone or cause any damage, her greatest desire lay in healing others and protecting those she loved.

Lilly knew the four children would look out for each other when they went away to school and that gave her some peace of mind even though she hated the idea of Harry going away, particularly to an environment where she knew he would encounter his half-brother. She hoped the boy wouldn't cause problems for Harry, but being James' son she didn't hold out much hope. One upside to it all was that Sirius and Remus were both Hogwarts professors and she hoped, despite their relationship with Lilly, that the two Black's would look out for Harry, she knew they were good people despite their friendship with James. If they didn't she may have to reconsider her decision to send Harry there. She knew Hogwarts was the best Wizarding School in the world and she wanted that for Harry, but if the learning environment wasn't a good one she would have to pull him out.

It hadn't been too much of a shock for Lilly when she found out James had a child with his mistress and now wife. He was Harry's age and born only a few months later. It probably should have been, but after finding out about the other woman and the compulsion spell nothing really surprised her anymore. She was curious to see how the other child would treat Harry when they met. She would be lying if she said it didn't worry her, James has been an incredibly unpleasant child and if his son was anything like him he was bound to be as well. The nasty things James and Sirius used to do Severus, Lilly didn't even want to think about them...

Okay, she had to stop thinking like this. If she didn't she wouldn't send Harry to Hogwarts at all and he would miss out on so much. No, he had to go and he would be fine. It would be good for him to see more of the world and meet new people and his friends would be with him; they'd take care of him.

"I know it's hard, but it's going to be okay."

Lilly looked to her left and found Molly watching her with knowing eyes.

"How do you keep from worrying yourself sick?" Lilly asked the older woman.

"Good heavens, dear, I don't. I haven't eaten anything since those letters turned up," the elder admitted quietly. "Still, I know I can't hold on to them forever and when the worry starts to eat me up inside I just think that at least they have young Harry and young Jade going with them. So many children must go off to school not knowing anyone at all, particularly the muggleborns, imagine how much more frightening it would be for them having never known anything about magic. No, of course it worries me, but I know they'll be all right as long as they have each other," Molly finished patting Lilly's hand reassuringly.

Lilly thought about that throughout dinner and the rest of the evening until the others headed home. When at last it was her and Harry alone again, she tucked her precious child in to his bed and curled up beside him stroking his short, spiky, black hair gently. Harry, who was worn out from his night of play, barely managed to open his eyes as he asked.

"Is something wrong mum?"

Lilly smiled reassuringly down at him and shook her head. "No, sweetheart, everything's okay," she whispered, kissing his forehead gently and resuming her stroking of his hair as he drifted off to sleep.

Once she was sure he was out she lay her head down beside his and held him close. Molly's words rang in her head. Harry was lucky; he wouldn't be going to Hogwarts alone. The question was, what would happen if the sorting hat placed them in different houses? Would their friendships survive or would they crumble under house pressure? That was the only thing that bothered Lilly about Hogwarts, aside from James' son's presence. The houses were supposed to be about friendly competition, but everyone knew it didn't work out that way. The competition could get quite vicious and she didn't want Harry getting hurt over it.

She was worrying again and she knew she had to stop it. Harry was going to Hogwarts, there was nothing she could do about it now, and worrying about things that hadn't happened yet never helped anything. Closing her eyes she threw her worrying thoughts from her mind and focused on enjoying her last chance to hold Harry close before he went away. If anything did happen she was only a firecall and an apparition away.

XX

end of chapter one.

So what did we think? Please review with opinions if you like it, no opinions or reviews I won't bother posting the rest.

Thanks for reading.

Rosalie


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